Only Twenty
by Terra Forever
Summary: After the series so spoilers to ending & such. The seemingly impossible has happened: Aya has been critically injured...what happens next? A short story with a bad summary. Please Read and Review.
1. Chapter 1

Author's Note: My first published fic so be kind. I've no one to beta it for me so if you've got any tips and such please let me know but do be gentle ^.^ None of Weiss belongs to me (darnit) - this is purely for enjoyment purposes - no suing allowed. It's a pretty short story and I may expand it with more details but I'm not sure if that's necessary so let me know please. Hope you enjoy it somehow!  
  
ONLY TWENTY: CH. 1  
  
He was only twenty. Twenty years old and he could fight and defeat a variety of opponents with his swordsmanship. He was independent, strong- willed, smart, and a leader of 3 other young men in their duties to rid the world of the dark beasts of the night. Just twenty years old and already he was stained with the blood of murderers, corrupt politicians, kidnappers, gang members, and many others. And now, just twenty years old, he was laying in a pool of his own blood, staring lost at the dark, star-studded sky above him.  
  
"Goddamnit," Youji hissed in one quick breath. He was running to get Aya's Porsche, ignoring the fact that he had a deep gash on his forehead and a painful cut on his left arm. When he saw nothing but a dark shadow in the alley, for a moment the assassin thought that he had run to the wrong place. But, as he walked closer he saw the outline of the vehicle and with a sigh of relief turned the ignition on. Youji swallowed hard but kept swearing if not aloud, then in his head. He couldn't believe what happened. None of them could.  
  
All Youji remembered was Ken and himself trying to keep some guards off of Omi while the youngest member could hack into their target's files. He and Ken were in charge of protecting Omi while Ran went off to kill their target. Apparently, their target had been watching them the whole time because the next thing the three knew, they were being aimed at by a high- powered rifle. Ken and Youji stood heroically and bravely in front of Omi to protect the younger Weiss. But, a dark figure jumped out from the darkness and with a loud cry began to lower his blade toward the gun- wielding man. A gunshot went off. The target fell to the ground nearly cut in half with his warm blood oozing out from his split body. Omi and Ken were about to smile in relief, but the sight and sound of steel hitting the ground followed by a heavy thud of a body, brought them to their wounded leader's side.  
  
"Abyssinian," Omi shouted, calling out to Aya, gently turning him over. He was bleeding heavily from a gunshot wound to the chest. They weren't sure what it hit, but from the looks of it, if they did not get Aya to a hospital fast, he would die.  
  
"I'm getting the car," shouted Youji. "Stay with him!"  
  
"Oh my God," was all Ken could say, watching Aya turning paler by the second under the dim lights around them.  
  
Aya opened his mouth but nothing came out except blood. "Don't talk Aya- kun," Omi whispered, not caring that he had not called Aya by his codename. How could this happen? How could he have been shot? He can't be hurt. Sure they've all been shot, stabbed, and wounded otherwise, but never to the point of death. Never like this. Not even with Schwarz. To think that a corrupt politician, head of an underground yakuza nearly killed their leader. It seemed impossible. It seemed impossible to even touch Aya in the first place.  
  
"Kuso," Ken cursed. He tried to stop the bleeding but it was no use. The bullet tore through Aya's slender body, entering through his upper chest exiting through his back.  
  
Omi could feel the warm blood flowing onto his hands and felt it was the only proof that Aya was in fact a human being, not a walking iceberg. Now was the time that Omi wanted Aya to be that iceberg. He didn't want to be holding the fragile body in his arms. He did not want to see this blood. Though he and Aya were never close and for a time even farther when they realized he was Mamoru Takatori, they were comrades. Aya was part of the only family Omi ever knew and he did not want to lose anyone else. "Where's Balinese? What's taking him so long?"  
  
Ken saw the frightened, panicked look on Omi's face and forced himself to be strong for the young boy. Omi was the youngest with the most generous heart. "He's coming. Don't worry, Abyssinian will be fine." He looked down and swallowed hard. The faraway look in Aya's eyes as he stared out a small window was making him rethink his last words. Seeing Aya shot told him NOTHING would be fine. Aya couldn't get shot. Aya shouldn't be laying here silent and pale as ever. "Come on, Aya, you've got too much to do still! You can't die now." Aya-chan was safe now. There was no one else to revenge and no one to get revenge on. Aya, personally, didn't have anything left to do. But, Ken knew that Aya did. Weiss needed Aya to keep them going. He was their leader. He was only a year older than Ken, but he was stronger, he was faster, he was smarter. He was cold and calculating enough to pull them through every mission alive. So why the hell did he have to be the one nearly dead? Damn it Aya! You're a cold bastard sometimes but now is not the time to turn your back on the world and leave us, he thought.  
  
Youji arrived shortly and they gently settled Aya into the car. The wound tore at the movement and Aya could barely keep his eyes open. They drove frantically to the hospital as fast as they could and the redhead watched the blur of lights blend into a haze of colors. He hurt everywhere and he wanted it to go away. He could barely hear what was going on around him, but he could tell what was going on for the most part. Aya was still conscious. Just barely, but still conscious. Yet he wanted to go away and he wanted to reach out to the bright colors and touch them. Aya wanted to stop being cold and be warm like the warm embraces he shared with his family so long ago. He wanted to see Aya and watch her smile and laugh and hug him. He wanted to hear her and hold her. But most of all Aya wanted the pain to go away. Only twenty and Aya was already feeling 2 times older.  
  
At seventeen he stopped being a teenager and became an adult. At twenty he stopped being just any other adult and became a real killer. A real assassin leading a real assassin group called Weiss. He had not even reached the age where it was said that one really begins life and already he was slipping away from it. A part of Aya wondered if it was worth sticking around to experience the "beginning" of life because Aya felt he had lived long enough. He had watched enough blood spill, killed enough people. He wasn't sure if he could do that anymore. Aya wanted to lead a normal life with his sister but he couldn't do that either. He was stained and Aya-chan was not. She was safer this way too while he could never know the words "safety" or "happiness." Those words disappeared from his vocabulary that faithful day. Only twenty and he was ready to die. Twenty years old and already he was dying.  
  
"Come on Aya," Omi whispered. "You have to hang in there. We're almost there. You can't leave us yet."  
  
"He's not going anywhere," muttered Youji. "That damn bastard's not gonna die on us NOW of all times. Stupid lucky asshole," he added, thinking of their now dead target.  
  
"Manx said she's meeting us at the hospital along with Birman," Ken said, ending his conversation with Manx. He was ready to throw his cell phone at the windshield or punch the dash. This couldn't be happening. "Can't you go any faster?" Ken shouted at Youji.  
  
"You wanna die too?" Youji shouted back.  
  
"Stop it," Omi shouted even louder. "If you go too fast and too carelessly Aya's wound will only get worse! We can't argue like little kids now!" Omi was only seventeen but he could almost take Aya's place. He was the most responsible of Weiss second to Aya. He was the one who did all the technological aspects of the missions. Without him missions would be nearly impossible. Without Aya, missions would be nearly impossible. Now as not the time to replace anyone. Aya could never be replaced and the other members of Weiss had no intentions on looking for replacements.  
  
Aya wanted to tell them that it would be ok, but he couldn't talk. He found it hard just to breathe. He knew that the bullet tore through something important; some organ he would need to stay alive. Aya thought it ironic that the one time he really wanted to talk and break his usual silence, he was forced to remain quiet. The redhead wanted to ask them to do things for him and he wanted to try and reassure them. He didn't know why he felt this sudden need to comfort his friends. Friends? Is that what they are, he wondered. He closed his eyes for a while and thought. Yes, they are friends. Not friends in normal respects, but friends. Aya knew that to Omi Weiss was family. Weiss was the last thing they all had. The last stable thing. And now Aya was disrupting that stability. 


	2. Chapter 2

Author's Note: My first published fic so be kind. I've no one to beta it for me so if you've got any tips and such please let me know but do be gentle ^.^ None of Weiss belongs to me (darnit) - this is purely for enjoyment purposes - no suing allowed. It's a pretty short story and I may expand it with more details but I'm not sure if that's necessary so let me know please. Hope you enjoy it somehow!  
  
ONLY TWENTY: CH. 2  
  
Omi froze when he saw Aya close his eyes for a long moment. He was about to take his pulse, fearing that the redhead had given up on them when Aya's eyes reopened. "Don't scare me like that," Omi sighed shaking his head. If he didn't know better, he could have sworn that through the passing headlight above, he saw Aya give him an apologetic look.  
  
"What did you say?" asked Ken.  
  
"Nandemonai (nothing)," muttered Omi. "There's the hospital!"  
  
"I see it! I see it," Youji told him. "Don't have to yell. Geez."  
  
"Gomen."  
  
"There's Manx and Birman," Ken pointed out seeing the two women.  
  
They quickly parked the car and carried Aya as gently as they could onto a waiting gurney. They followed right behind him, rushing with the doctors and nurses who were trying to stabilize the young man.  
  
The first thought that came across one of the nurse's minds was how young Aya looked while the boys when they explained the situation. Luckily, majority of the doctors and nurses who worked at this hospital were part of the whole system that began so many years ago. Part of the same system that ran Weiss. No questions would be asked beyond the vital information to identify the patient and the general situation. The other members were quickly treated as well but they did not feel the pain in their wounds. They could only worry about their leader, their comrade, their friend.  
  
Silently, they sat in the waiting room for hours with Birman and Manx. Worn and haggard were the three members of Weiss and despite being only twenty- two, nineteen, and seventeen they looked much older. All their work's toll was showing that night and Manx and Birman knew it. They knew that Weiss could fall apart of Aya died on them. Both women fought in their minds with the idea that Aya was too stubborn, too strong to die. He was only 20 after all. Too young to die; too young to even be killing. Yet, he could kill; he could still die.  
  
Each of Weiss remembered the first times they met Aya, the memorable and not so memorable reminisces. They tried to stop themselves from thinking this way because it was too painful, as if the boy was already dead. He wouldn't die. He couldn't die. If Aya did make it alive they would be sure to kill him for worrying them like crazy. They would be sure that he knew how scared they had been.  
  
Aya wanted to cry because the pain was becoming unbearably worse but he did not cry. He hadn't cried for a long time. He didn't even know if had tears to cry with. His mouth would have been dry, had he not so much blood in it. He could hear the commotion the nurses and doctors were making over him and he wondered if this is how his sister was fussed over. They saved her, had her in a coma, but saved her, he thought. And for that he was grateful. Aya wondered if they could save him to. He wondered if he wanted to be saved or not. The frantic orders and movements that the people around him made him long for his friends. They were more comforting to him than these people. If Aya was going to live or die, he wanted to do either in the company of his friends. The people who he led. The people who he was finally able to trust most. 


	3. Ending 1

Author's Note: My first published fic so be kind. I've no one to beta it for me so if you've got any tips and such please let me know but do be gentle ^.^ None of Weiss belongs to me (darnit) - this is purely for enjoyment purposes - no suing allowed. It's a pretty short story and I may expand it with more details but I'm not sure if that's necessary so let me know please. Hope you enjoy it somehow!  
  
Warning: Deathfic. too bad a warning gives it all away, but please, read on anyway ^_^  
  
  
  
ONLY TWENTY: Ending 1  
  
Finally he gave up. He was too tired to go through this anymore. He decided that he would put this to an end. All of it. And he finally felt relieved when he heard the doctor say "I'm afraid there's nothing left for us to do." He felt sorry for the doctor because he knew that despite the way doctors were supposed to detach themselves from their patients they could not detach themselves as much as Aya could. No one could probably detach themselves as much as killers. It was far too unhealthy physically and mentally to do something like get sentimental or attached. It was odd that Aya felt sorry for anyone, yet he did.  
  
When the remaining members of Weiss heard the news, Ken and Youji were ready to grab the doctor's collar and shove him back into the operating room and save Aya. Omi would have stopped them but he was in shock. Only Birman and Manx could have held the two boys back. The doctor, afraid, but relieved and genuinely sorry, told them that they had moved Aya to a room where he could be comfortable. Aya probably had a few hours left. They could talk to him until it was time.  
  
Angry, or upset, most likely both, the five went to see Aya. There, in his hospital room, the young man was attached to a few machines but not as many as he would have had if he were to live. No, they were just monitoring him and keeping him comfortable. "Aya-kun," Omi whispered.  
  
Aya almost smiled; glad to see the others instead of the doctors and nurses. He hated hospitals. Now that he saw his friends he was feeling better but he wished he could be in his own bed. He saw that Omi was in tears and Youji and Ken were trying to fight it. Even Manx and Birman were getting teary -eyed. It was annoying him. But really, it stirred him. Aya didn't think people would cry for him. He didn't want people to cry for him. Yet here were these five individuals who were in tears. And then Aya thought of his sister. He wanted to see her one last time but he knew it was impossible. He did not want her to see him like this. He did not want her to see how he was now. Aya knew she would be ok.  
  
"You know you're a bastard," Youji muttered. Everyone turned to him and saw that he was angry. "Why the hell did you have to play the hero? Why the hell did you go and prove us all wrong; that you ARE a fucking human being?"  
  
"Youji," Manx murmured.  
  
"Youji-kun," Omi put his hand on the oldest member's arm.  
  
"It's not fair you know, you leaving like this," Ken muttered, looking down. He then stared at Aya. "You can't do this."  
  
"We need you Aya-kun," sniffled Omi. "Weiss isn't Weiss without you."  
  
Aya didn't want to admit it but it was nice to hear those words. For the first time in years he felt a certain satisfaction with himself, with the life he had led. He was no saint, nor did he ever want to be one, but he was happy with it in the end. "Thank you," he whispered, smiling faintly. "Ran," he said in a heavy voice like a sigh. "Namae (My name)."  
  
"Ran-kun," nodded Omi, wiping away his tears. "Wakatta." Omi knew that by the change in names, Ran had accepted himself and had come to terms with who he was. He knew that now there was no way to convince Aya, no, Ran, to stay. He would be happier and at peace this way.  
  
"Take. care.of each.other," added the redhead. He wasn't cold anymore.  
  
"They'll be good," promised Birman. "We'll be sure to babysit and keep an eye on them."  
  
"Hey what's that supposed to mean?" chorused Omi, Ken, and Youji.  
  
"It means that you children need parental guidance from time to time," Manx smiled.  
  
Ran smiled too. He knew it was true, generally. But they were all kids really. He wanted to be a kid again too, but it was ok. He didn't mind. He just hoped that everything would be ok for his friends. He never meant to be a burden. Omi put a hand on Aya's shoulder. Youji put a hand on Aya's arm. Ken took a hand. Manx clasped her hand around Ran's. Birman had one against the boy's forehead. "Take care. of.her.." He whispered. And the others nodded slowly, smiling as they promised. It was then that Fujimiya Ran smiled his first real smile in 3 long, painful years and his body relaxed and tears fell.  
  
Only twenty years old, and already Fujimiya Ran could watch over his friends until they joined him.  
  
EPILOGUE: Hours later, after sunrise, Ken was the only one who could have done it. Omi was still in shock and too upset. Youji was out, trying to find some way to get over this. Ken would've been running or exercising or beating something up, but this needed to be done. Upon their arrival back home, they searched through Ran's things. They were really too tired to do it, but they decided that there may be of something of importance there. And there was. It was an informal will of a sort that Ran had written and kept updating since he first began his revenge. It was typical of him to be so prepared. Ken sighed when he found himself back at Koneko Sumu no Ie.  
  
"Irasshaimase," greeted a cheerful voice.  
  
Ken swallowed hard when he saw the owner of the voice. God this was harder than he thought. There stood Fujimiya Aya, looking almost like her brother; aside from being the opposite sex and having brown hair, the greatest difference between them was her large smile. He knew that it would hurt her to hear this so he flipped the sign on the door to "Closed."  
  
Aya did not notice, nor would she have cared. She knew who he was. She had seen in him the only photo she had of the four boys who once ran the store and lived in the apartments above it. "Hidaka Ken," she whispered, almost blushing. While her eyes spotted her brother in the picture first, they quickly moved onto Ken's face.  
  
Ken nodded, not surprised she knew who he was. He tried to smile but it was hard. He knew he had to be gentle and at least semi-cheerful for this girl he had never met. For the girl that his friend and leader had lived 3 years of life to take care of and avenge - the only person to receive any affection from the stolid redhead. "Anou.Aya-chan," he began, "there's something I have to - "  
  
"It's about Onii-chan," isn't it?" she interrupted, reading Ken's face.  
  
Ken blinked. "A-Aa." Aya sat down and looked down. "Gomen nasai, Aya- chan, demo, A-" Ken was about to say Aya but quickly corrected himself. "Ran passed away early this morning." He bit his lip when he saw the girl shaking a bit and the tear drops landing on her lap. Then he looked at her with amazement when he saw her smile.  
  
"Souka." she whispered. Sniffling and wiping her tears she still smiled. "Daijoubudesuyo," she told Ken seeing the worried look on his face. "He's happier now isn't he? He'll be ok now."  
  
"Aa," was all Ken could say.  
  
"He was only twenty." she whispered. "He was still too young. An old fart to me, but still young," she tried to laugh. Before she could continue, she found herself in Ken's arms, an embrace that reminded her of the ones her brother gave to her long ago. The ones she will never get again. Then she cried. Ken held her as she sobbed, her body shivering. He could not cry anymore because he had cried too much already. Ken was tired of crying for the same person he once could not get along with, but now missed. He would take care of Aya-chan They all would. It was the least they could do for Ran. They would continue what he had worked so hard for.  
  
"Only twenty but he has found his peace," Ken consoled Aya. And she smiled a genuine smile, happy and sad, but satisfied with Ken's words.  
  
Yes, so that was a pretty lame ending. but I tried! 


	4. Ending 2

Author's Note: My first published fic so be kind. I've no one to beta it for me so if you've got any tips and such please let me know but do be gentle ^.^ None of Weiss belongs to me (darnit) - this is purely for enjoyment purposes - no suing allowed. It's a pretty short story and I may expand it with more details but I'm not sure if that's necessary so let me know please. Hope you enjoy it somehow!  
  
ONLY TWENTY ENDING 2  
  
Finally he gave up. He was too tired to go through this anymore. He decided that he would put this to an end. All of it. He was tired of sitting around, being prodded at. He was either going to get some rest or die trying. Although when he finally thought he accomplished getting his rest, they fussed over him more. The young man realized that when the doctors knew you were going to live, they would only stick more tubes into you and give you more drugs. Aya was ready to pass out and he wondered why he hadn't yet. But he wouldn't now. He wanted to see his friends, not these doctors and nurses. He had never liked them much in the first place. Yet, they saved his sister and now they had just helped to save him.  
  
When the others were told of the news, they felt relief flooding through them. Manx and Birman could breathe now. Youji could stop pacing and Ken could cease his death grip on the chair. Omi could think clearly. Though Aya really shouldn't have any visitors, the boys' countenances told the doctor that Aya would be having visitors. So, the group rushed to Aya's room. But, they all froze when they saw the machines he was attached to. They had nearly lost him and yet he was still stuck in his dreary hospital attached to as many tubes as they imagined his sister had.  
  
Twenty years old and he should be dead. Twenty years old and he should even be in a coma at the least. But instead, Aya was awake, though just barely. Apparently the doctors had tried to knock him out cold but the drugs were taking a long time to work as if Aya was immune to them. They hoped he wasn't immune to the painkillers. Yet he was getting weary and it was obvious. The boys would not stay for long, just enough to let Aya know how worried and relieved they were. They were glad to know that the weariness that Aya displayed (a weariness that seemed impossible to be visible on his face) would not mean his death, but just yearning for rest.  
  
"You know you're a bastard," Youji muttered. Everyone turned to him and saw that he was angry. "Why the hell did you have to play the hero? Why the hell did you go and prove us all wrong; that you ARE a fucking human being?"  
  
"Youji," Manx murmured.  
  
"Youji-kun," Omi put his hand on the oldest member's arm.  
  
"Youji's right," nodded Ken, glaring at Aya. "You scared us all to death and here you were putting off airs that you were invincible. Damn asshole."  
  
Omi shook his head. The youngest of Weiss knew that Aya didn't need this kind of berating, but then again he had been worried. They all were. And he knew that Aya knew they were not serious. This was their way of showing that they cared. "You know, the next time you plan on getting shot, let us know ahead of time. Might make things a tad bit easier." He smiled.  
  
Aya sighed. "Since. when . was I ever. easy on you." He could have smiled, but he didn't. But his words were enough. Though his tone was as flat as ever, they knew that he got the joke and he was adding his two cents' worth. They all smiled.  
  
"You really did give us a scare," Birman told him. "For that you have to write a lengthy report of why you got shot." They all turned to her. "I'm kidding," she smiled, shaking her head. "Relax now, Aya. You have a lot of recovering to do."  
  
Aya didn't bother to respond. It was odd to hear people fighting to keep him alive; odd to have people who wanted him to live. He knew that part of it was to keep Weiss running, but he read them enough to know that they were sincere in their emotions. He would have scoffed at them for such sentimentality, but Aya knew better than to do that. He had done some growing up even though he was still only twenty. Aya knew that he had to recover quickly. He had a job to do, a group to lead. But they would manage on their own for now. They weren't that incapable, though they often seemed like it. Aya's eyes began to droop and even though he did not like the idea of slipping away into the darkness, it was not as cold as he remembered. It was warm like the dancing lights he had seen earlier. As his body relaxed and he fell asleep, a faint smile could be seen on his face.  
  
A few weeks later, fully recovered, Aya was reorganizing his room. In his drawer he found several pieces of paper. It was an informal will of a sort, updated every now and then since he first began his vengeance. Aya knew that in his line of work, death could come at any moment. Fujimiya Aya was always prepared. He looked at it and saw how his first and foremost request was that his beloved sister was taken care of. His second was that Weiss was well taken care of- that they took care of each other. That they would move on. He thought in the past that moving on would not be a problem since they had started off on the wrong foot. He wasn't even sure why he had written that since, at first, they were far from being friends. But now he knew better. Not that it softened him as much as the others would have liked. He was still stoic and cold as ever, but now he did it with full awareness of what his friends really thought inside. Only twenty and Aya could say that he had had a near death experience and was changed by it. Putting the will away, he moved on. He still had a lot of work to do.  
  
  
  
Yes, yes, cheesy ending - what can I say *shrug* =P I'm a pretty cheesy person. 


End file.
